International Governance

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International Governance

Though there is no formal, multilateral institutional framework to govern the global flow of migrants, states increasingly are exploring how to work collectively to make migration a more legal, orderly, and mutually beneficial process. Cooperation on migration management has been growing steadily, as the research below explores, involving both state and nonstate actors via regional dialogues, bilateral agreements, and the creation of international initiatives such as the Global Forum on Migration and Development.

This discussion highlights the best practices and experiences of different countries in engaging and maximizing the contributions that diasporas can and do make to the development of their country of origin, and more broadly the experience of policymakers in both sending and receiving countries and the related challenges and opportunities they face.

This discussion includes a status of preparation of the 2012 GFMD summit, including a discussion on the possible ideas and projects presently being contemplated that would fully integrate migration into the development framework, with a special focus on Africa.

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Driven by rising migrant deaths in the Mediterranean, the Bay of Bengal, the Red Sea, and elsewhere, as well as by the challenges to border-control policies implicit in maritime migration, representatives of states, civil society, and international organizations gathered in December 2014 under the auspices of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees to discuss ways to limit the loss of life and foster international cooperation. This commentary explores the issues and challenges surrounding irregular maritime migration.

The Member States of the United Nations must negotiate a set of sustainable development goals (SDGs) that will frame a new international development agenda to replace the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) that expire in 2015. This issue brief examines how migration can be integrated into the post-2015 development agenda, outlining proposed migration targets and elements for indicators within the SDGs.

In the coming weeks, the President-Elect of the European Commission and leaders of the European Union will discuss the new institutional map of the European Union, including new portfolios for the incoming college of Commissioners. Despite the fact that immigration is a critical challenge for the European Union, it has become harder for EU institutions to forge a strong policy. Perhaps as a result of this disconnect, one of the key ideas on the table is to create a Commissioner for Migration.

The European Council's new strategic guidelines, which set the pathway for future policy development in the area of Justice and Home Affairs in the coming years, seem unfeasibly insulated from today's migration and asylum realities and challenges confronting the European Union. The draft represents a missed opportunity to lead EU heads of state forward on critical issues in this area, MPI Europe's Director writes in this commentary.

This MPI Europe telebriefing, releasing the brief "Strengthening Refugee Protection and Meeting Challenges: The European Union’s Next Steps on Asylum," examines Europe's current reality with respect to migration and asylum and assesses the possibilities for future development of EU immigration policy.

With the European Council meeting in late June 2014 to adopt strategic guidelines on asylum and migration policy, amid strains resulting from Syrian refugee migration and other flows, this MPI Europe policy brief identifies challenges and proposes a forward course. The brief recommends increased engagement by Member States in practical cooperation as a way to strengthen implementation and consolidation of existing EU laws and achieve more consistent asylum decision-making.

In the absence of a policy plan to address the surge in unaccompanied child arrivals at the U.S.-Mexico border, simplistic explanations and draconian “solutions” are already surfacing. In reality, the problem is enormously complex and there is no single policy approach that is going to bend the curve on unaccompanied child arrivals. This commentary explores possible ways forward.

This edited volume from the World Health Organization (WHO), which includes chapters written by MPI researchers, examines country-level responses to the international movement of health-care workers, both before and after adoption of the WHO’s Global Code of Practice on the International Recruitment of Health Personnel.